I think that the "no mentions" have more to do with the fact that most people don't know this basketball team at all.
And while the fans and coaches know them, none of us really knows what to expect OUT of them.
I DO KNOW we will finish higher than 11th in the SEC however. I'd bet the house on that.

Hinson was good for our team, but he was at best a role player.
He's still trying to find himself too. He "ditched" the football team too this past August by transferring -- of course, this was after he had open heart surgery.
Veteran tight end no longer on Gamecocks roster, will transfer to play another sport
Tight end Evan Hinson is no longer on South Carolina football’s roster.
A school spokesperson confirmed that was the case, after Hinson was not listed in the team’s weekly game notes ahead of the season opener. Gamecocks coach Will Muschamp said Hinson will transfer to play basketball, the sport he played most during his time in Columbia.
“As of Evan Hinson and I’s last conversation, he was going to transfer and play basketball,” Muschamp said. “He felt like that was what he wanted to do moving forward. So we wish him the best.”
Hinson, a fourth-year player, was sidelined after surgery to correct an irregular heartbeat. He gave up basketball this offseason to become a full-time football player.
He’s the second tight end the team has lost this offseason after Kiel Pollard had to retire for medical reasons.
Hinson came to Columbia in Muschamp’s first recruiting class, aiming to play both football and basketball. He redshirted in football and played sparingly in 2017 and 2018. The 6-foot-4, 245-pounder had one career catch for one yard.
As a basketball player, he averaged 8.8 minutes, playing in 46 games. He started 17, all in 2017-18. He played in two of South Carolina’s 2017 NCAA tournament games.
His younger brother plays for Ole Miss and was in Columbia for the NCAA tournament last season.
It leaves South Carolina brutally thin at tight end, with four scholarship players, two of them freshmen and one other with little game experience.

Actually, it was a scrimmage, but they actually played Sunday afternoon at CLA. I found an article from an Illinois website that talks about the matchup, it was published Sunday morning. It discusses both teams equally, and I think I might have to pull for Illinois this season as well (standout quotes I put in bold):
What Illinois can expect from South Carolina in closed scrimmage
Brad Underwood is taking his team to Columbia, S.C. this weekend to do battle with the Gamecocks and his old friend Frank Martin in a closed scrimmage.
Road tests are coming right out of the gate for the Illini this season. This first one isn’t going to count in the standings, but it is going to test Illinois’ toughness, physicality and ability to play well on the road.
That’s important with games at Grand Canyon and No. 21 Arizona within the first week of the regular season kickoff.
“The one thing I have so much respect for the Michigan States, the Michigans and the Purdues over the last few years is there becomes that toughness and that expectation to not just win at home but to win on the road. And that’s where we have to get to,” Underwood said at Big Ten Media Day earlier this month. “We have to have that mentality that I keep lookin’ for… To be able to move your program to another level, and to do that you have to win on the road.”
Underwood added that he’s made a concerted effort to “create a little stress, a little adversity” in the preseason to prepare his team for those early road trips. Going against a tough and physical South Carolina squad might be the best preparation the Illini will get.
While expectations are high for Illinois basketball in Underwood’s third season, South Carolina is feeling a little disrespected. Martin’s teams have finished in the top four of the SEC standings in three of the last four years. But this month, the Gamecocks were picked 10th in the league’s preseason poll.
Martin sees it differently.
“It’s the most balanced team I’ve had (at South Carolina),” he said at SEC Media Day.
Defensively, the Illini should know what to expect against a Martin-led unit. Ball pressure, relentless effort and a lot of contact. Sound familiar? Underwood and Martin’s teams have both finished in the 300s in defensive free throw rate the last three seasons. Underwood’s team has forced more turnovers the last two years at Illinois. But Martin’s has been much, much better at defending the rim and getting stops overall.
South Carolina’s defense took a bit of a step back last season — ranking 71st in the country in defensive efficiency. In the four seasons prior, the Gamecocks finished in the top 40 each year. They were third in the nation when they reached the Final Four in the 2016-17 season.
In the preseason, Martin has mentioned that his offense might be further ahead than his defense. That angered him after a practice earlier this month, but after watching the tape, Martin told reporters that his offense just might be that good.
“We’re so fast. We get up and down, and defensively, it’s hard to defend,” Martin said. “I’m not ready to sit here and say we’re a great defensive team. But we’re not as bad as I thought we were initially (after practice).”
Ayo Dosunmu’s first ‘prove it’ moment for lottery pick status next summer is likely going to come in Tucson next month against Nico Mannion and Arizona.
Mannion is a McDonald’s All-American guard, and both players have frequented the lottery range in mock drafts heading into the season. But Dosunmu is going to square off with a first-round talent on Sunday in South Carolina sophomore A.J. Lawson.
The 6-foot-6 combo guard from Canada was named to the All-SEC freshman team last year after averaging 13.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. Lawson, like Dosunmu, can get hot from three but more consistency is needed for the next level. Both players shot just below 36 percent from three as freshmen.
Dosunmu had a higher assist rate and fewer turnovers of the two. But Lawson has the advantage in explosiveness. He can elevate and throw down some big slams in transition. Lawson brings quite a bit length and athleticism as a combo guard, and he played a decent amount of point last year.
Most rankings give Dosunmu the edge. CBS Sports released their top 30 draft prospects late last month. Dosunmu was slotted at 10th and Lawson was No. 30. But in ESPN’s latest mock draft, Lawson (No. 28) is one spot ahead of Dosunmu (No. 29) late in the first round.
The loss of Chris Silva is a key cause for questions with this South Carolina team. He was the Gamecocks’ leading scorer (15.2 ppg), rebounder (7.6 rpg) and shot-blocker (1.9 bpg) last year, and the year before.
South Carolina does get back 6-foot-11 senior Maik Kotsar, who put up 6.7 points and 4.7 rebounds per game last season. But outside of that, the Gamecocks are going to rely on new and mostly inexperienced pieces in the frontcourt.
There are early expectations for 6-foot-7, 225-pound freshman Jalyn McCreary. He is an athletic and physical combo forward, who can score through contact, rebound and put the ball on the floor a little bit. And the Gamecocks really need Tennessee Tech grad transfer Micaiah Henry to step up. He has a similar build to Silva at 6-foot-9, 235 pounds with strength and length, but how does he translate from the OVC to the SEC?
Even given South Carolina’s down-low inexperience, it will be interesting to see how Giorgi Bezhanishvili and Kofi Cockburn handle the expected level of physicality. Cockburn has been dominant at times in practice this fall. Can he play without being plagued by foul trouble?
On the wing, the Gamecocks have Keyshawn Bryant and Justin Minaya, who were both Illini recruiting targets at one time. Bryant is a freak athlete at 6-foot-5, and he did some good things as a freshman last season. Minaya played just five games as a sophomore last year before going down with an injury. His return is big as an outside shot-maker.
South Carolina has a number of young pieces in the backcourt, in addition to Lawson. The Gamecocks are particularly excited about in-state freshman Trae Hannibal and redshirt freshman Jermaine Couisnard. Both were big-time scorers at the high school level. George Washington transfer Jair Bolden is one to watch as well. He averaged double figures and led his team in three-pointers made as a sophomore at GW.

To get to bowl eligibility we must beat a team that we have not beaten in over 5 years.
Either Clemson or Texas A&M (whom we have coincidentally never beaten in 5 tries).
Does anyone really feel confident enough in this secondary at this point to believe that we can beat either Trevor Lawrence or Kellen Mond?
Because I'm not seeing it.
On to basketball we go!

Stats on the NBA vs. China "debate" (courtesy of William Weinbaum of ESPN)
A newly released Seton Hall Sports poll Fri. found 77% of Americans support the Rockets keeping & defending GM Daryl Morey after his tweet for Hong Kong protesters against China, vs. 9% who said he should be fired (14% didn't know/no opinion).
Also 54% backed Morey's stance & 19% said he shouldn't have tweeted.
And 46% said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver handled the matter well, while 36% didn't.
Finally 52% said LeBron James's critique of Morey was out of financial self-interest, while 28% said he was sincere.

By Brian Rauf - Fansided
South Carolina basketball is hoping to build on last year’s 4th-place finish in the SEC. Here is how the Gamecocks look going into the new season.
Following their surprise Final Four run in 2017, South Carolina basketball has been remarkably average. They hold a 33-32 overall record in the two seasons since, including an 18-18 mark in SEC play.
This offseason was also filled mostly with news about players who will not be playing for the program this coming season.
The Gamecocks landed UNC transfer Seventh Woods, a Columbia native, but he will have to sit out a season due to transfer rules (he was not a graduate transfer). Chris Silva, South Carolina’s leading scorer, rebounder, and shot-blocker from a year ago, signed with the Miami Heat as an undrafted free agent. Hassani Gravett, their starting point guard, signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Orlando Magic.
That said, things appear to be on the upswing for this Gamecocks program. AJ Lawson and Keyshawn Bryant emerged as reliable contributors during their freshmen seasons, with Lawson flashing the potential to be a star in the SEC. Six of their top 10 scorers are back, giving this group a good bit of continuity.
The Gamecocks program has made some underrated strides under Martin in recent years, finishing in the top four in the SEC in three of the last four seasons, a streak that includes a fourth-place finish – ahead of Auburn – last season.
Can they extend that streak in 2019-20? Here is a full season preview for the Gamecocks:
Starting lineup
Jermaine Couisnard
Point guard is South Carolina’s biggest positional question mark, and Couisnard is the program’s biggest question mark from a player perspective. He redshirted last year due to an academic issue but was the talk of the program during the offseason, as his play on the summer circuit drew significant praise from former high school teammate R.J. Barrett and many former Gamecock players.
Couisnard is more of a scorer than a passer and he may not play the traditional point guard role, but he’s too talented not to have on the court. His shooting ability and range will give the Gamecocks an element they’ve really never had under Frank Martin.
AJ Lawson
South Carolina only experimented with Lawson at point guard in short spurts last season, and we’ll probably see him split time between playing on and off-ball this season. At 6-6, he averaged 13.4 points, 4.3 rebounds, and a team-high 2.9 assists in 30.5 minutes per game last year, showcasing tremendous all-around ability.
Originally ranked in the top 40 of the 2019 recruiting class, Lawson reclassified to 2018 to play for the Gamecocks last season. His lack of physical maturity limited him somewhat and now, with a full offseason in SC’s training program under his belt, Lawson could take a huge step forward as a sophomore.
Justin Minaya
Minaya was one of South Carolina’s best players when he was a freshman in 2017-18 and was expected to have a big role last year, but a knee injury caused him to take a medical redshirt after just five games. He’s a smooth, smart player who can shoot and rebound at an effective clip.
Keyshawn Bryant
Keyshawn Bryant is a lanky 6-5, 200-pound athlete capable of pulling off the spectacular.
That athleticism allowed him to make contributions as a slasher, finisher, and rim protector, but his lack of shooting (20.7 percent) kept him from being a threat of any kind outside of the paint. South Carolina will need everything he brought to the table last year (particularly defensive with Silva gone), but they also need him to improve on his perimeter skills.
Maik Kotsar
Kotsar is the lone holdover from that Final Four team, but the senior hasn’t shown much progression throughout his career. Still a solid defender, Kotsar’s offensive game remains extremely limited to where he can’t be anything more than a role player. That was a problem the past two years, but the Gamecocks have others who can pick up the offensive slack this year, which will allow Kotsar to focus more on the things he does best – defense and rebounding.
Key reserves
T.J. Moss
Moss also took a medical redshirt last season after injuring his ankle and foot after seven games of action, but the freshman showed promise during the little bit of time he was on the court. Another solid shooter, he averaged 6.3 points and 1.9 assists in 20.6 minutes per game. Expect him to be South Carolina’s sixth man if he’s not in the starting lineup.
Micaiah Henry
South Carolina is short on traditional big men and experience, and Henry can fill both of those needs off the bench. The grad transfer from Tennessee Tech stands 6-9 and 235 pounds and averaged 9.7 points and 4.7 rebounds on 58 percent shooting last season. He’ll add some needed rim protection as well (1.8 blocks per game).
Jalyn McCreary
The highest-rated recruit in South Carolina’s freshman class, McCreary is a very strong, athletic presence inside the arc at 6-7 and 225 pounds. There’s no doubting his physical tools but will likely need some time to adjust to the college game. McCreary should see more playing time – and could earn a spot in the starting lineup – as the season progresses.
Alanzo Frink
Frink played sparingly as a freshman but has the kind of versatility at 6-6 and 265 pounds that will prove to be valuable as a four-man off the bench. He showed flashes of what he can do against Virginia (nine points, eight rebounds) and Clemson (eight points, seven rebounds) last season.
Trey Anderson
Anderson was actually the lowest-rated prospect in South Carolina’s 2019 class according to the 247sports Composite, but he has quickly impressed Martin, as the head coach explained last month.
“Physically he’s a lot more prepared than I thought he was going to be. I know he can shoot it. I know he can move. We recruited him. It’s not like I saw a picture, said he looks good and send him scholarship papers. I didn’t realize physically he’s as competitive with work ethic to attack the weight room and drills. You learn more about kids when you start to coach him. There is a lot of guys you guys read about in scouting reports that when they get on the court they don’t progress as fast as they need to. He’s actually progressed extremely fast. That’s what has caught me off guard.”
His size (6-6) and shooting ability should earn him at least some time in the rotation.
Non-conference schedule
Nov. 6 — North Alabama
Nov. 10 — Wyoming
Nov. 15 — Cleveland State
Nov. 19 — Boston University
Nov. 22 — Gardner-Webb
Nov. 26 — Wichita State (Cancun Challenge)
Nov. 27 — West Virginia/Northern Iowa (Cancun Challenge)
Dec. 1 — George Washington
Dec. 4 — at UMass
Dec. 8 — Houston
Dec. 15 — at Clemson
Dec. 22 — at Virginia
Dec. 30 — Stetson
South Carolina’s lackluster non-conference play last season cost them any shot at making the NCAA Tournament, but things set up pretty nicely for them this year.
The Gamecocks start with five very winnable games (although they lost to Wyoming last year) before heading to Cancun over the Thanksgiving holiday. That four-team tournament will give South Carolina two good “measuring-stick games” no matter who they play. All four teams missed the Big Dance last year, but all return most of last season’s production are expected to take leaps forward and be firmly in the mix this season.
December games against George Washington, UMass, and Stetson should all be wins as well – a true road game against the Minutemen could get interesting – but that three-game stretch against Houston, Clemson, and Virginia is one of the toughest stretch of games the Gamecocks have all season.
Houston returns a large majority of the team that made the Sweet 16 last season and are projected to be one of the top two teams in the American Athletic Conference, along with Memphis. A home game against them gives Frank Martin’s squad a great chance to pick up a resume-building win early in the year.
Clemson is expected to be bad this year, but rivalry games on the road are always difficult.
That brings us to the biggest non-conference game on the schedule – a road game against the defending national champions. Virginia will look much different with Kyle Guy, Ty Jerome, and De’Andre Hunter, yet the Cavaliers are still expected to be a top 25 team. Plus, UVA has only lost in Charlottesville seven times in the past five seasons and will have the toughest defense the Gamecocks will face.
Season outlook
South Carolina should fully expect to make it back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since that magical 2017 Final Four run or, at the very least, be in the bubble conversation.
Martin has finally been able to restock this roster with talent after it was so depleted due to unexpected departures following that run and should be able to have success in a relatively wide open SEC behind Kentucky, Florida, and LSU.
However, there are two big questions facing this team that will determine just how successful they will be. Without Chris Silva and Hassani Gravett, the Gamecocks lack experience – will that matter? And can they find reliable, consistent point guard play?
AJ Lawson gives South Carolina their first legitimate star since Sindarius Thornwell and the combination of him, Minaya, and Bryant on the wing will give opponents plenty of matchup problems. They should be able to provide enough offense to complement what we know will be a stingy defense under Martin.
There’s a real possibility that youth and inconsistent point guard play will sink the Gamecocks and keep them out of the postseason altogether for sixth time in Martin’s tenure. At the same time, there’s also enough talent on this roster to think they should finish in the top six in the SEC, potentially finishing as high as fourth for the second straight year.
Chances are, we’ll know which direction things will go for the Gamecocks following their trip to Cancun and that tough December stretch. My guess is they fall somewhere in the middle and sneak into the NCAA Tournament as a bubble team.

I keep hearing this term being tossed around and so I had to look it up to make sure I knew what it meant.
Courtesy of Webster's:
quid pro quo
/ˌkwid ˌprō ˈkwō/
noun
a favor or advantage granted or expected in return for something.
Now I get why the Democrats know this term so well! This is essentially how they have gotten people to vote them into office since the Civil Rights movement.